Habsburg Empire

The Habsburg Empire existed from 1519 to 1556 as the personal union of the Holy Roman Empire (Germany, Austria, and the Duchy of Burgundy) and Spain (Castile and Aragon), created by the election of King Carlos I of Spain as Holy Roman Emperor on 28 June 1519. As the head of the House of Habsburg, Charles inherited vast lands in Europe, and the empire's realms would be expanded to include much of Central America and South America as Charles sent out conquistadors to conquer the New World. The empire was the largest empire since the Frankish Empire, and it was the closest of any empire to ruling all of Europe since then. Because of widespread fears that the Habsburgs were planning to create a universal monarchy and create European hegemony, Charles V found himself fighting several enemies during his long reign, and his reign was dominated by the Italian Wars with France, the struggle against the expansion of the Ottoman Empire in the Balkans and North Africa, and the civil warfare between the Empire and its rebellious Protestant nobility. In 1556, the Habsburg Empire fractured after Charles V abdicated; Charles V gave the Holy Roman Empire to his son Ferdinand, while Spain went to his other son, Philip. The Habsburg nations would remain close allies, however, until 1700, wheen the Habsburg line in Spain went extinct.